Apparatus for operating semaphores



(No Model.)

No. 446,479. Patented Feb. 17,1891.

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WITNESSES (No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

N. J. SMITH.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING SEMAPEORES.

No. 446,479. Patented Feb. 17,1891.

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NATHAN J. SMITH, OF PONTIAC, MICHIGAN.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING SEMAPHORES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 446,479, dated February17, 1891. Application filed March 14,1890- Serial No. 348,911. (Nomodel.)

To ctZZ whom it may concern;

Be it known that 1, NATHAN J. SMITH, a citi zen of the United States,residing at Pontiac, county of Oakland, State of Michigan, have inventeda certain new and useful Improvement in Apparatus for OperatingSemaphores; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

It is the object of my invention to provide suitable apparatus forsimultaneously oper ating two railway semaphore-signals; and it consistsin a combination of devices and ap pliances hereinafter described andclaimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View of my apparatus with the topcovering-plate removed. Fig.2 is aseotionalviewof the same on line a;.r. Fig. 3 is a plan view of a variation. Fig. 4: represents detailviews of the form of actuating-block employed in the constructionillustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 shows detail views of the form ofactuating-block employed in the construction illustrated in Fig. Fig. 6is a'plan view of the apparatus, showing connection with railway-track.Fig.7 illustrates the mannerof supporting the connecting-rod.

In carrying out myinvention I will describe the apparatus as shown inFig. 6, where it is connected with the movable portion of arailway-track at the switch, and where the movement of this movabletrack, in being thrown from the main track to the side track, or viceversa, operates, through the medium of my apparatus, to move thesemaphores.

A represents the main track, and B the side track.

0 is the movable section of track, and D the switch-stand connected withthis movable section and operating the same.

E is a suitable base=plate for my apparatus. This may be anchored in anysuitable manner, as, for instance, by the bolts 6. 0n the upper face ofthis base-plate is a groove E, Figs. 1, 2, and 3.

F is a suitable block having an extended bearing f at the base whichfits in the groove E. This block is adapted to slide along this groove.In. this block, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, are two horizontal openingsor slots f f The upper portion of the block has an extended bearing fwhich rides in a groove g of the cover-plate Gr. This cover-plate isalso provided with a slot g. Extending from the top of the block Fthrough this slot g is a suitable projection f Instead of the slots f f,the block F may be provided on opposite sides with lateral projections fone of which is cut away on its upper side and the other on itslowerside to form diagonal shoulders f Figs. 1 and at, for engagement ofthe projections 71; on the arms h M, Fig. 1.

H II are the actuating-levers. These levers are shaped substantially inthe form of a bell-crank lever, the long arms 7t extending out frombetween the base-plate E and coverplate G.

As shown in Fig. l, the short arms h 7L1 and 7t2 h project inward andengage the shoulders f on the projections f of the block F, Figs. 1 anda, while in the construction shown in Figs. 3 and 5 the arms h 7L areadapted to engage the horizontal orifices or slots f f the arm 7tentering the slot f while the arm 71 enters the slot f Thus as the blockF is moved along the base-plate it carries with it the short arms of thelevers, and thus aotuates the long arms. As will be observed, each ofthe levers H H has at its fulcrum the bearing or projection 7L3. When inposition, this bearing or projection on the lever I'I bears upon thebase-plate and raises the lever, 50 that the arm h can enter the slot fwhile in the lever H the lever rests directly on the base-plate, whilethe bearing or projection k bearing on the cover-plate, holds the leverfirmly in position.

If desired, the pivots J may be in the form of bolts and be utilized tobind the base-plate and cover-plate together; or, if desired, otherbolts might be used and these pivots be used for that purpose alone. Itwill thus be seen 95 that by connecting the projection f with themovable section of track the movement of the track will operate to slidethe block along the base-plate, and thus operate the long arms of thelevers H H.

These levers, being connected by cables or ortherwise with thesemaphores, will operate the latter at every movement of the switch. Inpractice I prefer to attach the cables which connect with thesemaphores, as shown in Fig. 6, so that on the movement of the block Fin retracting the levers and exerting a tension on the cables to movethe semaphores the heaviest work comes on the levers at the end of theirstroke. Thus as the block F is started back and the levers begin toexert a tension they begin to take the slack out of the cables, and bythe time sufficient tension has been exerted to begin to operate thesemaphores the levers have reached the position shown by the dottedlines in Fig. (i, and the heaviest part of the strain on the loverscomes when they are nearly parallel withthe cable on which they areexerting the tension, thus making it much easier to operate the cablesthan as though the heaviest strain came upon the lovers when in theirouter position.

In order to relieve the pivots J from as much strain as possible, Iprovide upon the sides of the base-plate the projection e against whichthe bearings or projections 7L3 of the levers may bear as the straincomes upon the levers.

In Fig. 3 is illustrated a variation in the form of my apparatus, inwhich the projecting portions h of the arms are omitted.

A difficulty has heretofore been experienced in this style of apparatusin which the semaphores have been connected directly with the switch,from the fact that the' expansion and contraction of the cables used toconnect the semaphores with the switch have interfered with the properoperation of the semaphores. In order to obviate this expansion andcontractioml connect the semaphores with the switch by a wooden rod,suspending this rod at intervals by suitable chains, ropes, or the like,as illustrated in Fig. 7, so that the rod may have a suitable amount oflongitudinal motion and yet be freely supported without friction.

As the block or plunger F, (shown in Fig. 1) is moved in a directiontoward the bottom of the figure, it would impinge on the arms 71; and sooperate to throw the semaphores in a direction across the track. On thereturn motion, however, the weight upon the semaphore will act throughthe medium of the connecting-rods or cable to keep the arms 7t snuglyagainst the base of the block until the semaphore-arms are in a verticalposition. In the different construction shown in Figs. 3 and 5 the slotin the forward end of the block F, as shown in Fig. 5, will permit theblock to still move in the return direction after the semaphoreshavereached their vertical position, the slot simply serving to embrace thearms h instead of causing the said arms to stop the movement of theblock. In this way the switch-rails may be moved to the requisitedistance to bring them into their proper position without liability ofbeing stopped short of that position by reason of the block F cominginto contact with the arms h or other object. So, also, in themodification shown in Fig. 3, where the arms h are dispensed with. Inthis case the block F is simply a wedgeblock that projects between thearms h and 71 and operates in all essential particulars the same as thatshown in Fig. 4:.

It is of course obvious that instead of op erating the semaphores bymeans of the movement of the switch my apparatus may be utilized tooperate the semaphores by hand-that is, a suitable handle or lever maybe provided on the block F, by means of which the operator may move theblock at will, and thus set the semaphores. This latter constructionwill be of use more particularly at railwaycrossings, where by providingtwo sets of the semaphores, one for each track, and two sets of myoperating mechanism suitable signals may be displayed for each track.

It will be observed that between the baseplate and the cover-plate is astrip or guard K, upon which the upper lever bears and which operates toprevent the two levers from interfering with each other or rubbingagainst each other.

I would have it understood that while I do not here lay specific claimto the Wooden rods and their connections in lieu of the usual wire orcables for operating the semaphores, I regard the same as my invention.

hat I claim. is-= 1. An apparatus for simultaneouslyoperating twosemaphore-signals, consisting of two bell-crank levers, each having itslong arm connected with a semaphore, an actuating block or plungerdisengaged from but adapted to move in contact with the short arms ofsaid levers, and means connecting said block with the switch mechanism,whereby the movement which shifts the rails is communicated to andcaused to shift. said block, substantially as described.

2. An apparatus for simultaneously operating two semaphore-signals,consisting of two bell-crank levers, each having a long arm connectedwith the semaphore, and an actuating block or plunger disconnected frombut adapted to move between and in contact with their short arms, saidblock adapted to move horizontally and engaged with a thrust-rodconnected directly with the switch mechanism, whereby the movement whichshifts the rails is communicated as a direct horizontal thrust, causinga like movement of the block or plunger, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with the be1l-crankle-- vers, each connected withthe semaphore, of an actuating block or plunger disconnected from butadapted to move between and "in contact with the short arms of thelevers, and means connected wit-h the switch mechanism,

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whereby the movement of the switch is communicated as a thrust to saidblock or plunger, said block adapted by its impact against the shortarms to move the semaphores while thus in contact, and constructed andadapted on its return movement to move freely beyond the position itattains when the semaphores have reached their vertical position,

M. A. REEVE, W. H. OHAMBERLIN.

